No Man Left Behind: The Series
by jenthetrulysly
Summary: Sometimes angsty, sometimes happy - a collection of drabbles and one shots written about all of the guys of Hawaii Five-O.
1. The Public Defender

_**The Public Defender**_

Despite Manicote's continuous litany of objections the defence lawyer was ruthlessly tenacious, trying to lead the Prosecution's star witness. Steve's testimony had been replayed from every angle, no stone left unturned. Yes, he was at the scene of the crime. Yes, there was probable cause for him to enter the accused's apartment in the first place because they had a reasonable suspicion that a crime was taking place. He sighed with relief when the defence rested and John was allowed to re-cross-examine his witness. With one question, the DA was able to cut through the defence's submission like a hot knife through butter.

"Mr McGarrett, what was the reason behind the reasonable suspicion you referred to earlier?"

Steve smiled wryly. "Dan Williams was held in that apartment. If we had found him even a second later, the charge Jim Colt would be answering to would be murder one, and not attempted murder."


	2. Like Toy Soldiers

**_Like Toy Soldiers_**

_AN - an episode tag of sorts for 'A Death in the Family'_

The earth squelched under his feet given the storm that had just passed over them, the sky still a foreboding gray. Steve couldn't bear to look at the casket but he forced himself to, forced himself to acknowledge that a moment's lapse of judgment had resulted in this. It had been a mistake sending Chin on that undercover mission. Now, one of the bravest and most honourable men he knew was dead.

A long time ago he came to realise that he was gambling with the lives of men, of their fate and destiny. It was a war where the spoils went to the victors between justice and crime as the death toll spiralled. The stakes were too high and he was almost bankrupt. Kono, Ben and now Chin…

Steve turned to look at the man standing beside him, grief clouding over his clear blue eyes. They were all soldiers in this never-ending war against crime. In that moment he made a vow that if he was going to go down, he was going to take down as many of them as possible and save those that he could.

So long as Dan was by his side, he could continue putting one foot forward, one at a time.


	3. Passion

_**Passion**_

In the darkest part of the night when there were no thoughts of drug smugglers and gunrunners in his mind Steve's thoughts would drift back to Cathy. He had loved her with a passion that burned, but like any flame that burned twice as bright, it only burnt half as long. He rolled over onto his side and came face-to-face with the large empty space next to him on his bed. He managed to convince himself that he had done the right and noble thing by letting her go, but that didn't make the dull ache of heartbreak any less painful.


	4. Blood

**Blood**

Steve's heart was threatening to beat right through his chest as he stared at the fallen detective. His shaking hands were pressed tightly against Danny's neck where the knife had slashed through skin earlier. The wound was deeper than he initially thought, deep enough to get the dark haired detective thinking that it might have slashed the carotid artery.

The younger man gasped in pain as Steve put more pressure onto the wound in an attempt to stem the flow of blood, but ultimately it was futile. There was a very delicate balancing act required since he needed to be careful not to crush the Second-In-Command's windpipe. Steve looked up to see those normally clear blue eyes blinking at him, and that quirky mouth move, but no sound came out except for a small gurgle.

There was perfect silence, other than Danny's shallow breathing as he struggled for his life. The telltale sounds of the ambulance sirens were nowhere to be heard. Steve went cold as he could feel Dan's pulse get more sluggish and fear welled up inside, fear of the fact that the other man might really die. He couldn't stop his hands from shaking nor the sob that tore out of his body as a tear welled on the corner of Danny's eye and slid down his cheek.

As his hands became stained with the younger detective's blood the light in those blue eyes dimmed, before finally fluttering closed.

"Don't you dare give up on me now, Danno, you hear?" McGarrett growled, resisting the urge to shake the other man into consciousness.

He ignored the way the blood seeped steadily onto Danny's clothes and down onto the concrete floor, onto his hands before his knees were wet with the sticky warmth of blood. The air had a faint tang of copper to it, but Steve ignored it as well, as he continued the firm pressure to stop the bleeding and prayed for that ambulance to come.

So long as he could feel the thrum of Danny's pulse beneath his fingers then he will never give up.

**PAU**


End file.
